Child care · County · South Dakota
Child care centers and preschools in Union County, SD
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for child care centers and preschools in Union County, SD, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 33 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,286 of 1,611 scored counties
#8 of 10 scored counties in South Dakota
- Listings
- 9
- 2 chain locations (22%)
- Official establishments
- 6
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $3.6M
- On child care and other personal services · $492 a household
- Spending per listing
- $399K
- 60% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.3
- 2.1 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 17,402
- +3.3% since 2020
See the child care centers and preschools around any address in Union County
The site report maps the child care centers and preschools on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Union County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
For child care centers and preschools, Union County has a Groundwork market score of 33 (lower middle): #1,286 of 1,611 scored counties and #8 of 10 scored counties in South Dakota. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
At $492 per household (15% below the U.S. average), households in Union County spend about $3.6M a year on child care and other personal services. Spread across 9 child care centers and preschools, that is $399K per center, 60% below the U.S. figure of $1M.
Union County has 9 child care centers and preschools on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 22% of them, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.3, 2.1 times the U.S. rate of 5.8.
Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in Union County in 2023. That is one for every 1,218 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Union County grew 3.3%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Union County compares
The same measures for South Dakota and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all child care and other personal services by the child care centers and preschools counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Union County | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.3 | 6.7 | 5.8 |
| Spending per listing | $399K | $598K | $1M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,218 | 1,306 | 1,573 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +11.6% | +5.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.3% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on child care and other personal services | $492 | $399 | $581 |
| Median household income | $89,636 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 33 | 26 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7 → 6
- Employees, 2023
- 89
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 28Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 92 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 4The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as child care services in Union County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Union County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 17,402+3.3% since 2020
- Households
- 7,310
- Median age
- 40.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 462 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 37
- Median household income
- $89,636+27.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $124,814
- Median home value
- $301,100
- Jobs located here
- 9,648
- Daytime population
- 19,509Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Union County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the child care centers and preschools on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Union County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardChild care and preschools across South Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in South Dakota for child care centers and preschools, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with Union County marked.
Top counties in South Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Codington County, SD | 56 | 6 | 4.8 | $723K | +4.3% | #673 of 1,611 |
| 2Lawrence County, SD | 46 | 6 | 5.0 | $749K | +14.0% | #927 of 1,611 |
| 3Minnehaha County, SD | 44 | 50 | 5.9 | $709K | +7.6% | #983 of 1,611 |
| 4Lincoln County, SD | 44 | 26 | 9.3 | $553K | +17.5% | #993 of 1,611 |
| 5Pennington County, SD | 39 | 34 | 7.3 | $549K | +6.6% | #1,132 of 1,611 |
| 6Meade County, SD | 37 | 7 | 5.8 | $673K | +2.7% | #1,166 of 1,611 |
| 7Brown County, SD | 35 | 14 | 8.6 | $449K | −1.7% | #1,235 of 1,611 |
| 8Union County, SD | 33 | 9 | 12.3 | $399K | +3.3% | #1,286 of 1,611 |
| 9Brookings County, SD | 31 | 11 | 8.0 | $470K | +9.6% | #1,321 of 1,611 |
| 10Hughes County, SD | 23 | 8 | 11.0 | $379K | −0.9% | #1,445 of 1,611 |
Other business types in Union County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
- Child care and preschools33
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many child care centers and preschools are in Union County, SD?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 9 child care centers and preschools in Union County. 2 of them (22%) are chain locations. The listings count day care centers and preschools. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as child care services in 2023. Another 28 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Union County, SD spend on child care and other personal services?
About $3.6M a year, or $492 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 child care centers and preschools on map listings, it comes to $399K per center. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,310 households in Union County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Union County, SD compare with the U.S. for child care centers and preschools?
Union County has 12.3 child care centers and preschools per 10,000 households, 2.1 times the U.S. rate of 5.8. Spending per center is $399K, 60% below the U.S. figure of $1M. At the U.S. ratio of child care centers and preschools to household spending, Union County would have about 4, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,218 households, against one for every 1,573 across the U.S.
How fast is Union County, SD growing?
Population estimates put Union County at 17,402 people in 2025, up 3.3% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 7,310 households. Median household income in Union County is $89,636, 11% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 27.4%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Union County scores 33 for child care centers and preschools (lower middle), #1,286 of 1,611 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Union County. It maps the child care centers and preschools on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for child care centers and preschools · All 56 business types in Union County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Union County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Union County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.